The Love Games
by KatnissEverdeen44
Summary: A story about how Gale and Peeta fight to confess their love to Katniss.
1. Gale's Confession

**The Love Games**

Chapter 1

Gale's Confession

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games!**

_Knock, knock, knock._

I woke up, startled by the sound. I sat up in my bed, feeling a little dizzy. I yawned and rubbed the sleep out of my eyes. It felt weird being woken up this early on a weekend. I always slept in.

"Who is it?" I said. My voice was so quiet that I could barely hear myself. It was probably Prim or my mother, but they didn't normally come in this early. Who would want to talk to me this early in the morning?

"It's me." A male voice said.

"Um...come in." My heart started beating faster. I probably made the wrong decision to let the person in, but it was too late now.

The doorknob was turning. I could hear the door creaking as it opened slowly. I was relieved when I saw who it was.

"Gale? What are you doing here at six o'clock in the morning? You woke me up." Gale had never done this before. It must be something important.

"Oh, hi, Katniss, sorry I interrupted your slumber. Is this a bad time to talk?" he asked very casually and calm.

"Well, now that I'm up, you can talk. What's the matter?" I let out a big yawn. Maybe _then_ he would see just how tired I was. I crossed my arms over my chest and raised my eyebrows slightly, waiting for an answer.

"I came to confess my love to you!" he said with a big smile. His arms were wide open, like he wanted a hug.

"What?" I said, with a little bit of anger in my voice. Clearly, I'm not a morning person.

"Well, you heard me. Yes, I know it's completely out of the blue and a little odd, but I just couldn't wait to tell you!" He was pacing around the bedroom moving his arms around in big movements, like he was telling a story.

"Gale—"

"No, don't speak," he said, interrupting me by putting his hand over my mouth. "I think I'm much better for you than that fool named Peeta. I don't think you should hang around him anymore."

"Gale, he's not a fool, he's my friend." I said, trying to get a point across.

"I have to say, I get a bit jealous when you're with him." He turned away from me facing the door.

"Whoa, don't you think this is all a little too weird? You're standing in my room while I'm not even properly dressed, trying to confess your love to me and saying that I shouldn't hang around Peeta!" I was starting to get really angry now. My face was getting hot and I could tell it was going red. Gale didn't do strange things like this. He couldn't tell me what do to! He'd never acted this way before. This was a side of Gale that I'd never seen before and I wished I hadn't. Peeta had always stayed calm, even when you knew he was mad. I was trying to stay calm, like he does, but I couldn't. If only he were here right now.

Suddenly, the door barged open. All that was there was a shadow of a person in the dark hallway. Gale turned his head to look at me and then turned back to stare at the figure. The person took one step forward into the light of the bedroom. I could now see very clearly who the person was.

"Is everything alright?" Peeta asked, looking at me with a worried expression on his face. His voice had a bit of an angry tone. When he saw that Gale was in the room, he gave him a glare.

"Uh oh." Gale said, swallowing hard.


	2. Gale vs Peeta

Chapter 2

Gale vs. Peeta

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games!**

"What are you doing here, Gale? I thought you would be out hunting game. You shouldn't be waking up Katniss this early in the morning. She needs lots of rest." He still sounded angry. His eyebrows were lowered and his jaw was clenched tight.

"I came to confess my love to her. What are _you_ doing here?" Gale was no longer happy like he was earlier this morning. He was serious now.

"I heard her yelling at someone from outside, so I assumed you were here," He had a grin on his face. "I came to see what was going on."

"Nothing is going on. Now leave!" He pointed at the door.

"No." Peeta said, taking control.

"I bet your pretty little bakery is full of costumers. You belong there. Not here." He looked out the window and saw Peeta's bakery.

"Actually, I'm not working until this evening. I was just going to the store get some flour." Peeta said. He would always go to the store early in the morning to get more ingredients if they were out. Apparently, Gale didn't know that.

"Still, you shouldn't be here!" Gale said, walking towards Peeta slowly.

"Why not?" Peeta was starting to calm down.

"Because Katniss doesn't want you here!" He looked at me.

"What? I never said that! Peeta, you can stay." I said. I didn't want Peeta to think he wasn't welcome here anymore.

"Whatever! Katniss, I'll talk to you later." I couldn't believe he gave up that easily. He stormed out of the bedroom and slammed the door. I heard the front door shut and I could see him outside through my window. I was surprised my mother and Prim didn't hear all the yelling. He was walking back to his house at a very fast pace. I felt kind of bad. He is my best friend after all.

"Don't you think that was a little harsh?" I was getting concerned about Gale.

"No. He deserved it. Doesn't he have something better to do? He should learn to just leave you alone." Peeta was starting to become protective again.

"Stop it, Peeta! Now you're acting weird, too!" Why was he doing this? It was so unlike him. Gale and Peeta never have problems with each other. Well, I guess that's because they never really talk to each other. Even when they did, nothing like this would happen. When they're apart, things are so much better.

"Sorry, he just...makes me so mad." Peeta looked at the floor and started pacing.

I got out of my bed and stretched. I realized that I was still in my nightgown. I didn't really care right now. I walked over to Peeta and gave him a hug.

"Don't worry about it." I didn't want him to feel any worse than he did right now.

"Thanks," Peeta said, looking at me with his sad deep blue eyes. "Gale is nice to you though...sometimes." He smiled.

"No, he's nice all the time. He can just get a little protective." Now I was _really_ feeling bad for Gale.

"A little?" Peeta said, raising his eyebrows.

"Ok, a lot." I had to agree with him this time. I smiled back.

"That's better." Peeta had really calmed down after Gale left. "Can we go for a walk?"

"Um, sure." I said. It didn't look like I was going to get anymore sleep. "Just let me get dressed." Maybe a walk would make me feel better.

Peeta nodded and went into the hallway and closed the door. I pulled open the closet door. I found an old navy blue t-shirt and a black sweatshirt. I quickly slipped them on. I opened my dresser drawer for a pair of jeans. I put on my comfiest pair. Right now, I was too tired to care what I looked like. I pulled my hair back in a braid. Cinna always loved it when I do that. I opened my bedroom door and I saw Peeta waiting.

"You look stunning." He said. It didn't matter what I was wearing, he always said that.

"Not really," I said.

"Ready?" He asked.

"Ready."


	3. Peeta's Confession

Chapter 3

Peeta's Confession

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games!**

I walked towards my mother's bedroom. I knocked on the door.

"What?" My mother was so quiet.

"I'm going for a walk with Peeta. Okay?" She was curled up in a ball with the bed sheets tightly wrapped around her.

"Mmm." She mumbled. She was too tired to answer.

I closed the door. I walked down the hall to Prim's room. Peeta followed. I opened her door and took a peek inside. She was sound asleep. I smiled and shut her door.

"Alright, let's go." I said as I walked towards the front of the house.

"Ladies first." Peeta said opening the door. He's such a gentlemen. That's probably one of the reasons why he has so many fans.

"Thanks," I walked out the door. It was a little cold. It's a good thing I put on a sweatshirt. Peeta was only wearing a plain black t-shirt and a pair of navy blue jeans. How was he not cold? He quietly shut the door behind him. "So, how exactly did you get inside the house without my mother hearing you?"

"Well, first of all, she said that I could come in any time. Secondly, I made my way through the house quietly so I wouldn't wake her up. I didn't have to worry about Prim though, she sleeps through anything." He laughed.

"Yeah, you're right. She also said that Gale could come in any time too. So that explains that." We started walking towards the forest. My favourite place. It was quiet, relaxing, a good place to talk to Gale, and a great hunting spot. It was also a great place to hide from the Capitol. Peeta grabbed my hand. I was used to it. We are supposed to be "the star crossed lovers" after all. We walked in silence for a while, enjoying the peace and quiet we had.

"I have something important to tell you." We were almost at the forest now. I could see it through the morning fog.

"What is it?" I asked, staring into the beautiful forest.

"You'll see." Peeta said looking at me.

"Is it good news or bad news?" I couldn't wait to hear what he was going to say.

"I don't know."

"Then just tell me!" Was he waiting for the right moment or something? We were at the front of the forest now. We walked into it, looking at the scenery around us. We went in a little further until we found a nice place to sit with lots of shade. We sat down on the grass, which was still a little damp.

Peeta let out a sigh. "Isn't this relaxing?"

"Don't change the subject." I had to agree though, it was relaxing.

"Sorry, I'll tell you. I just needed the right time and place." He looked at the ground.

"So, what is it?" I asked.

He sighed again. "This isn't easy for me to say. Maybe I just shouldn't say anything."

"No, continue. I want to hear it." I'm feeling a little bad for Peeta. This seems to be really bothering him.

"Well, you and Gale seem _really_ close. You hang around each other all the time."

"So?" I said. I didn't like where this conversation was going.

"You're spending a lot more time with Gale then you are with me. I don't like it." He looked at me, almost as if he was mad.

"Peeta, you know I love you. That will never change. Now, stop thinking that way." What's gotten into him lately?

"I'm not sure if you do, Katniss!" He let go of my hand and stood up.

"Of course I do! Why would you say that?" I stood up too. He knows I love him! Why is he doing this?

"You've known Gale a lot longer then you've known me! I know you love him!" Peeta said. He took a step away from me.

"That doesn't change anything. He's only my best friend and nothing else! I think you're just jealous!" Tears stated rolling down my cheeks. I couldn't control my emotions. I've never fought with Peeta before. I was so glad the cameras weren't here. I couldn't even imagine what would happen if this was on T.V.

He turned to face me. "Jealous? You think I'm...jealous? Katniss, you've got it all wrong. I love you so much that I announced it on live T.V. You've done nothing to show your love for me!"

"That's not true! We're perfect together! Even the Capitol thinks so!" I said. I cried even more now.

That really seemed to make him mad. "The Capitol means nothing...and right now, neither do you. When you figure out your feelings, let me know." Peeta's eyes were so sad. They were filling up with tears too. He started to walk away from me.

"Peeta, don't leave!" I yelled. He stopped and slowly turned around. He shook his head and started to walk even faster now. I sat down. This was too unreal. I was feeling a little dizzy. My tears were blurring my vision. I put my hands over my face. 

_What have I done?_ I thought.


	4. White Rose

Chapter 4

White Rose

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Hunger Games!**

I took my hands away from my face. Peeta was gone. I was hoping he'd come back to me, but I knew he wouldn't. Everything was going wrong today. Peeta thinks that I don't love him, Gale just confessed his love to me, and they're both waiting for an answer on which one of them I love. Right now, it's impossible to choose.

I stand up and look around the forest. I let out a big sigh and wipe the rest of the tears from my face. It was almost seven o'clock and my mother and Prim are probably awake by now. I bet Prim would like to hear everything that's happened this morning. I always tell her everything. As I walk out of the forest, I can hear the mockingjays sing from the trees. The song is so beautiful and relaxing that it almost makes me forget about all my sadness and worries. For a moment, I could care less about what had just happened.

I walk out of the forest and onto the road. There's no sign of Peeta or Gale. I start running towards my house. I don't want my mother to worry about where I am. I stop for a second to look at Peeta's bakery.

I gasped. _This can't be happening, _I thought. Peeta stumbled out of the bakery door, and collapsed on the ground.

Anger rushed through me. _What happened? Is he alright? I have to help._ I started running towards him as fast as I could. I bet his parents did this. He's always telling me all of the things they do to him. I felt so bad. He shouldn't let them treat him the way they do.

Finally, I reached him. I knelt down next to him. "Peeta...Peeta!" I started shaking his shoulders. He wasn't answering me. I shouted even louder this time. "Peeta!"

He still wasn't answering me. I checked to see if he was breathing. He wasn't. I knew that there was one thing that I could do to try to save him...mouth to mouth. My mother had to use it on her patients sometimes and I would watch her, so I think I know how to do it. I looked around one more time just to make sure Gale wasn't near us watching me. No one was there. I took in a deep breath and leaned down towards Peeta's lips. I was only inches away...

"What happened?" His eyes suddenly flickered open and he woke up. His voice was so quiet. He looked around and then put his hand to his cheek. It was covered in blood. He moaned in pain. The side of his face had a huge gash and it was dripping blood down the side of his neck.

I quickly sat up. "P—Peeta! You're alive!" I yelled.

He groaned again.

"Sorry," I said more quietly this time. My loud voice must have been throbbing in his head.

"It's okay. Where am I?" He asked.

"We're right outside your bakery. I—I don't know what happened though. Everything's going to be alright, okay? So don't worry," I wasn't sure if this was true or not, but I had to comfort him. I could tell he was badly hurt.

"How did you find me here?"

"Well, when I came out of the woods, I looked at your bakery. I saw you collapse out the door, so I came over to see what was happening. I bet your parents did this to you." I looked away from him. I couldn't even imagine what they did.

"No, they couldn't have. They went out this morning," He said.

"Really? Then who could have done this?" I was still shocked by what had happened. It all seems too unreal.

"I don't know. I just wish I didn't pass out though, maybe then I would remember who did it." He looked sad.

"It's not your fault. You couldn't help it." Why was he putting all the blame on himself?

He tried to sit up. "Is anyone else hurt?"

"Hold on, you're not going anywhere," I said as I gently sat him back down. Does he not realize how serious his injuries are? He has a big gash in the side of his cheek, and a black eye. He could very easily get an infection.

"Why not?"

"Have you looked at yourself lately? You're a mess." I smiled.

"Oh, I guess you're right," he admitted. He smiled back.

"Yeah, I know I'm right. Now we need to get to my house and get you taken care of." I put his arm around my shoulder and lifted him up carefully.

"Thanks Kat—" He cut himself off and looked at the bakery door.

"What's the matter?" It looked like he was staring off into space.

He walked over to the door and bent down to pick something up. He took a deep breath and slowly turned around. "Katniss...I think I know what happened."

"What?" I asked. "Tell me," He was acting so strange.

He looked down at his hands and then slowly opened them.

I gasped. To my surprise, he was holding a white rose.


End file.
